Jordan Weissmann on MLK's economic dream

So what, exactly, was the reverend's economic dream?  In short, King wanted the government to eradicate poverty by providing every American a guaranteed, middle-class income—an idea that, while light-years beyond the realm of mainstream political conversation today, had actually come into vogue by the late 1960s.

~ Jordan Weissmann, "Remembering Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Solution to Poverty," The Atlantic, January 20, 2014

Kevin Duffy on why welfare schemes fail

Q: If a conservative or libertarian believes the individual is better suited to make economic and financial decisions than big government or corporations, why then are they opposed to UBI, which recirculates wealth to individuals?

A: Welfare schemes don’t “recirculate wealth to individuals.” They take property from some individuals to give to others. The former group has accumulated wealth through hard work, vision, pluck and sometimes luck, but overwhelmingly by peaceful and voluntary means. These are the most productive members of society and the best stewards of capital. Transferring any portion of their wealth to the poorest stewards of capital (especially politicians and their bureaucracies) can only shrink the economic pie.

Ironclad law of economics: Tax a certain behavior and you get less, subsidize a certain behavior and you get more…

~ Kevin Duffy, Quora answer, December 26, 2019